Bike Week trauma cases down this year

Thursday

Mar 28, 2013 at 12:01 AMMar 28, 2013 at 11:58 AM

The hospital handled 44 trauma cases — down from 51 the previous year.

SKYLER SWISHERSTAFF WRITER

DAYTONA BEACH — Halifax Health Medical Center's trauma unit saw a decrease in Bike Week-related admissions and deaths from last year. The hospital handled 44 trauma cases — down from 51 the previous year. Trauma alerts, which are the most critical injuries, declined even more substantially, falling from 28 in 2012 to 10, a 64 percent decrease. "That could indicate the people who were here were riding safer," said Kevin Captain, trauma program manager. "We were prepared for a high volume, very busy Bike Week. As it turned out, it was slightly different than past years." One person died at Halifax Health, down from five deaths the previous year. Across the area, at least three Bike Week-related deaths were recorded this year. The hospital tracks its Bike Week and Biketoberfest admissions annually. The weeklong event attracts thousands of bikers, but it also leads to a surge in patients for local hospitals. Only a third of riders who arrived at the emergency room were wearing helmets. That's troubling for Captain. "The vast majority who come in with helmets usually don't have as severe of head injuries," he said. The average age of patients was 48, and three-fourths were men. Sixty-four percent reside outside Florida. Halifax Health maintains the only Level II trauma center in Volusia and Flagler counties. Without it, patients would have to travel to Orlando, Jacksonville or Melbourne. The center treated nearly 2,000 injuries last year. Hospital officials estimate it costs more than $5 million annually to achieve around-the-clock trauma readiness. On-call surgeons in a variety of specialties can be no more than 30 minutes away from the hospital. While the trauma unit sees a spike in volume during special events, more than 90 percent of year-round admissions are from Volusia County. Trauma statistics for special events tend to fluctuate from year to year, Captain said. Many emergency room nurses swear a full moon leads to more mayhem, although studies have debunked it. This year's Bike Week occurred during a new moon.